Her Biggest Mistake
by Dalyankiz81
Summary: Declan was about to get an unexpected surprise in Dublin **I decided that Declan deserved the distraction of a little subplot with Kayleigh whilst Anna was back in Boston discovering Jeremy's true colours. Also my take on some of the exchanges between Anna and Jeremy upon arriving back home** Takes place from when Declan and Kayleigh meet in Dublin. Hope you enjoy it! Please R R.
1. Chapter 1

Time stood still. Declan froze, rigid to the spot and stared wide-eyed at Kayleigh.

 _What the hell?_ This he didn't expect.

He could see Kayleigh still talking but he could no longer process what she was saying. Eventually he became aware of his name being repeated.

"Declan?" Her voice shook him from his daze.

He blinked for a prolonged second and met Kayleigh's eyes once more.

Was she expecting him to respond to this little revelation? And how exactly? What on Earth was he meant to say to this?

"Declan?" She uttered his name once again but in a more choked, desperate whisper this time. He noticed her eyes had started to fill with tears and for a second all he wanted to do was take her into his arms and tell her that everything was going to be alright. The way he used to.

Did he really feel sorry for the girl who, so callously, left him for his best friend and took off to Dublin, leaving Declan shattered and broken?

Well... maybe.

Luckily his sensible subconscious was on hand to remind him of what she had done to him and it wasn't something he could just forget. A river of conflicted thoughts rushed through his confused mind. In a few short seconds he managed to get a grasp on what had just occurred.

He'd asked Kayleigh to meet him here the day after Anna left, merely to get back the treasured engagement ring his mother had left to him.

And yet here she stood telling him that she and Ryan were well and truly over, apparently because she'd realised she still loved Declan and had made the worst mistake of her life leaving him.

And once Ryan had got wind of this... well he didn't stick around for long.

"Declan, I wanted to call you so many times since Ryan left.." Kayleigh was on the brink of tears again. Declan felt his heart flip a little. Damn, she looked breathtaking - a broken but beautiful soul.

She swallowed hard. "But I thought you'd probably met someone else by now and was happy again, and actually I didn't have any right to make contact and mess with your head - again."

Declan's mind wandered back to the flame-haired siren who had entered his life only a few days ago, turned it completely on its head, and then exited it just as quick. He briefly wondered how she was doing - whether she'd had a safe flight back to Boston but, more importantly, whether she'd fallen back into her luxury lifestyle with the fancy apartment and her cardiologist fiancé. He thought back to Jeremy down on one knee in that hotel foyer, surrounded by pathetic, excited onlookers with cameras. In the little time he'd got to know Anna he never once thought she'd be impressed by that kind of charade/display of affection, whatever it was. But hey, what did he know?

"Declan please say something"

Kayleigh's voice again broke his thoughts of Anna.

He took a beat. Let's be honest, Anna had made it perfectly clear what direction she was heading and had seemingly made her choice quite easily. He knew he needed to forget her, she wasn't at all like he thought.

Besides... it appeared he was being given this chance of a potential fresh start. _With his first love? Doesn't happen to many._

He looked down at his feet. He had to take control of this situation now.

"Kayleigh it's kinda crazy to think we can just... go back to the way we were, you know?"

Her face fell and silent tears rolled down her cheeks as she slowly nodded in agreement. Declan hated himself for making her feel like this, in spite of how she'd almost destroyed him.

"But" he said with a pronounced enunciation. Kayleigh looked up, hopeful. "I think you can use a friend right now. Why don't you come and stay at the pub for a few days?" The words were out before he realised. _But what_ _harm could it do?_ He managed a half smile. "There's a recently vacated room with your name on it".

He thought of Anna tripping out all the electrics with her silly phone charger and he couldn't hide the slight smile that crept upon his face at this memory.

 _Seriously though Declan.._ He silently berated himself. _You really need to forget about the red-headed American._

* * *

Anna waited at the baggage carousel in the arrivals hall. She couldn't stop smiling. "Oh look, there's Louis!" she exclaimed when she spotted her Vuitton case on its way round. She glanced at her fiancé who just offered her the mother of distasteful looks at her little outburst. Anna didn't care though, she was engaged. She was elated. It was everything she'd ever wanted.

Louis drew up to them and she stood back to let Jeremy haul him off the baggage belt. Except Louis stayed put and just trundled past them. _What the hell?_ She couldn't believe Jeremy had made no effort whatsoever to grab her case for her. In fact he was too preoccupied by a video call he'd just taken with a colleague to even notice.

She briefly thought of Declan - he'd carried her bags for her at every opportunity. Such a gent. How did a cheeky bugger, with an ability for blatant rudeness and sarcasm, actually have such great manners underneath? _And turn out to be one of the sweetest, loveliest guys she'd ever met? And that kiss..._

 _Stop!_ Anna distracted her wayward thoughts. _For God's sake woman, you're engaged to the love of your life aren't you...? Forget about Declan, he probably has you._

And with that all thoughts of the charming handsome stranger, who had grown on her a lot during their few days together in Ireland, were gone. _For now..._

Louis reappeared once more, having journeyed a full lap of the carousel, and Anna grabbed him with both hands from the belt. Jeremy was now several feet away from her now and still engrossed in his video call. She walked up to join him as he ended the call. "I can't wait to get to our new apartment" she grinned. "Me neither sweetheart" replied Jeremy as he kissed the side of her head.


	2. Chapter 2

It was three days since Kayleigh had joined Declan at the Caragh. They'd been getting along just great, and Kayleigh had been a great help behind the bar especially in the evenings. Some of the old regulars who had been customers since forever had even made comments about how wonderful it was that they were back together, but Declan continued to put them straight, that they were just friends. In actual fact it bothered him slightly that they'd all seemingly forgotten exactly what she'd done to him in the first place. _Did these people have no morals?_

The problem was none of that stoic bravado counted for anything when he met Kayleigh on the landing that night as he was heading to bed. She asked him if she could give him a hug - to say thanks for giving her the chance to spend time with him again, and not throwing her out of the door like she felt she deserved. And that right there was his undoing. As she slipped her arms round his neck he gently took her face in his hands and placed a tender kiss on her lips. She looked slightly surprised but then proceeded to reciprocate, kissing him as if it was the last chance she would ever get. A frission of euphoria ran through him. It was a familiar feeling, one that he thought must relate to when he and Kayleigh were first dating, yet strangely similar to how he felt when he'd kissed Anna in the B&B after dinner. He pulled back and instead enveloped Kayleigh into a bear hug as he tried to make some sense of the craziness in his head.

 _That kiss in the B &B had been incredible_. Briefly he wondered whether Anna really was happy in her life back in the States. But before his thoughts could take him elsewhere Kayleigh broke free from their embrace, kissed him on the cheek and thanked him for everything before wishing him goodnight. As he watched her head to her room his mind was a whirlwind once again, as it had been in Dublin three days ago.

* * *

Anna stood back to admire the decor she had put in place for her and Jeremy's housewarming/engagement party. As their first guests arrived and more continued to do so she couldn't believe how lucky she was to finally have everything she ever wanted - an incredible apartment, a job she adored and, most importantly, an amazing fiancé. She'd already been planning some the smaller details of their dream wedding on the quiet since arriving back. _But isn't that what every bride-to-be does_? And she is the queen of planning and organisation after all.

Having done the obligatory walkaround with guests for, it would seem, the twentieth time, Anna finally took some time to hang out with her friend. Libby was Anna's best friend and also recently engaged so she was looking forward to them having plenty of wedding-planning fun in the coming weeks and months. She liked her a lot. She'd made a joke earlier about throwing Anna out of the window so she could take her new apartment for herself but that was just Libby's dark sense of humour wasn't it?

As Jeremy approached something he said caught her attention. He was talking to Libby's fiancé. She couldn't quite make it out exactly but something about a "package deal"? Libby jumped on it straight away and assumed the realtors had done something crazy like throw in a ring with the purchase of the apartment. "Uhh, more like the other way around" replied Jeremy cautiously as he was very aware that his fiancée was now right next to him.

 _What?_ Anna suddenly realised that something odd was going on and she wanted to know what.

"What do you mean?" she asked in a half laughing manner to try and sound as nonchalant as possible.

Jeremy proceeded to explain everything to her and their friends, and time stopped..

A huge black abyss opened up and threatened to consume Anna. She thought she was actually going to going to throw up. She could see Jeremy still talking but could no longer hear a word he was saying. All she knew at this point was the one thing she needed to - his proposal in Dublin has merely been because he'd learned that their chances of securing the apartment was virtually zero as an unmarried couple. _That's pretty much what he'd said wasn't it?_ She vaguely realised that even Libby and her fiancé were shocked but she couldn't worry about them, it was time for herself. And she needed to get away from Jeremy right this minute.

As she stood in the kitchen for a few minutes watching their guests, Libby included, pawing over their possessions - the expensive dining table, sideboard and everything else - Anna, in her devastation, came to a snap realisation. The last 4 years had actually been for nothing. Jeremy obviously didn't want to marry her because he loved her. He was as utterly shallow and materialistic as everyone else in that room. It was so far removed from the person she had become and she did not want to be a part of that for a second longer. _In fact she knew exactly where and with whom she wanted to be right now..._

Spotting the fire alarm button they'd had installed, she seized her opportunity before she had a chance to change her mind. The panic that ensued when the alarm sounded gave her a few precious minutes to run to their bedroom, grab Louis and throw a few things in before grabbing her passport and making her escape. In fact, Jeremy was completely unaware of his fiancée's whereabouts during the whole evacuation as he was far too busy gathering his cameras, iPads and anything else he deemed to be "valuables".


	3. Chapter 3

The morning sun streamed through Declan's bedroom window signalling the start of a new day. He hadn't been able to sleep all that well unsurprisingly, his mind constantly going over the events of the last few days. He shook his head and groaned inwardly. He realised he had a habit of opening cans of worms by doing something dumb. He was thankful it had stopped when it did and that he hadn't woken up this morning with Kayleigh in his bed. He wondered if she was up yet. Yes there was no denying it, they had been getting on really well since they'd met up. And their kiss last night had been wonderful, a real tender moment between them... but a full blown reconciliation? Could he really go there again? He wasn't sure. He'd always believed that once you'd been burned by an individual... well they'd always find a way to hurt you again, if you let them.

Plus, he realised, he was dealing with some pretty strong but conflicted feelings for Anna as well. Which was crazy he knew, I mean she was well and truly settled back into her own life again on the other side of the Atlantic. _Far away from him._

His mind briefly took him back to the day they'd said goodbye in the hotel. What if he'd got to tell her how he felt about her before the cardiologist got in there first? How would she have reacted? She'd seemed a bit upset about the prospect of leaving and potentially never seeing him again. But was that just wishful thinking on his part?

A knock on his door broke his reverie. It was Kayleigh wondering if he was awake.

He had to say something in case she just let herself in.

"Ah yeah, I'll be down in a sec, would you stick the kettle on for us?" It's all he could muster as his brain was feeling pretty frazzled.

He knew he had to talk to Kayleigh, and with no airs and graces. If he was still hung up on someone else, even though she'd since disappeared from his life, it was only fair to let Kayleigh know where she stood. It was becoming clear that he couldn't possibly enter into any kind of relationship until he'd gotten over Anna from Boston a hundred percent.

Downstairs Kayleigh had made them both a cup of tea and was sat at one end of the main dining table. Declan walked in and took a long sip - it was heavenly. This lady certainly knew how he liked his morning cuppa. Momentarily he considered whether this kind of familiarity was enough to paper over the cracks of their messy past, and drive Anna out of his head.

It took Declan just a second to realise. _No, it isnt.._

He sat down opposite Kayleigh. _Ok here goes.._

"Kayleigh.." He fidgeted with his hands. "Erm Kayleigh.." He was very aware he was starting to sound like a broken Marillion record.

"I'm sorry for what happened last night upstairs. I dunno why I did that. Maybe too much to drink..."

Which upon saying, Declan immediately realised his error - she knew damn well he hadn't drunk anything all night as they'd been working flat out in the bar until the last punters left.

He recognised his blunder and knew he'd just have to come clean instead.

"Ok.. no.. well.." He genuinely didn't know where to begin.

To his surprise Kayleigh moved to sit closer too him and took his hands into hers. "Declan, please don't worry about it. I'm absolutely fine and I won't take it any further, I promise".

Could she really see what was going on in his head? The thought unnerved him.

She continued. "I had an inkling that perhaps you're hung up on someone else anyway".

"Did you?" _How did she know this stuff?_

"Yeah well Joe mentioned an American girl who came last week looking for a ride to Dublin. He said you'd offered to drive her even though I imagine it was probably the last place you wanted to go." She gave a small laugh. "They all thought you'll kill each other by the time you got there!".

Declan thought of Anna's face when he'd introduced her to his beloved Renault 4, it was a look of sheer distaste and contempt, let's face it. Still the memory made him smile.

"Have you fallen in love with her?" Kayleigh's blunt to the point question nearly winded him. _What?!_

He pondered this for a second or two. _Had h_ _e?_

Even if he had it couldn't be real love could it? He'd already established that he and Anna were as different as night and day.

But Kayleigh had taken charge by now. _What the hell had changed in her since last night?_

"Declan... I really do love you... so much, you mean the world to me.. And I'm SO sorry for hurting you, I wish I could take back the terrible things I did to you.." Kayleigh looked as if she was going to cry again. _Oh sweetheart_ , _please don't.._

"But if you've found someone else that deserves you more than me then I'm sorry pal you need to jolly well do something about it.. If we're not going to be together then I'm gonna need it to be for a very good reason indeed!" Kayleigh was acting jovial and with humour but was it all a cover up for how she was really feeling, Declan wondered.

If he was confused before then he was messed up beyond comprehension now. It was all very well Kayleigh saying these things and being lovely and understanding - essentially he'd been let off the hook which was a huge relief. But was he ever going to see Anna again? Unlikely. So what was the point?

Thankfully the rest of Declan's morning passed by without so much of a thought of his ex or his "lost love". A group of English backpackers had descended onto Dingle so the Caragh had been frantic from mid morning.

* * *

Anna looked around at the signs hanging from the ceiling of the arrivals hall at Dublin Airport. She had retrieved Louis already and was looking for a taxi or transfer service. She had no idea how long a cab would actually take to get to Dingle as the last time she arrived it had been via a dodgy boatsman on his fishing trawler. She giggled inwardly at the memory of having to trudge across the beach in her Jimmy Choos.

At least she'd had the sensibility to wear flats this time.

It was mid afternoon by the time she drew up to a familiar painted brick building. It had seemed like the longest drive.. Had she indulged in a nap on the ride? Maybe. She stepped out of the taxi, grabbed Louis and made her way up to the entrance of The Caragh.

Anna steeled herself. " _So.. its now or never Brady_ "

Slowly she opened the door to the public house. It was so busy. Much busier than she'd remembered but, then, what did she know? She'd only been here for one day before, perhaps it was usually like this.

She quickly scanned the room for any familiar faces - no Joe or Seamus and there was definitely no sign of Declan. That was ok though, she had a plan. Well she would.

A staff member who she didn't recognise was manning the bar. Anna placed her order and sat down.

She sat back in her seat and considered what Mr O'Callaghan was going to make of her unexpected arrival. She hadn't imagined it, there definitely had been a spark between them and a brief moment of "what if?" in the hotel shortly before Jeremy had caught up with her. Oh how she hoped Declan was going to react positively to what she had to say.

The chicken pie she'd ordered arrived and, as expected, it was absolutely delicious. Exactly what she needed after flying 3000 miles. It was almost too tempting to just throw off her little plan and devour the lot but she knew she had to get his attention. However less than a minute later she discovered she didn't need to, for the door to the kitchen opened and out walked the man himself. It took him all of a nanosecond to spot her and he stopped dead in his tracks, staring open-mouthed at her. Anna suddenly felt hugely reassured, he obviously was affected by her too. She stood up and began to walk towards him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked.

"Typical" she replied but in no way offended. "Rude as ever". _And so damn gorgeous.._

"Well, Declan O'Callaghan.. I'm here to tell you that I've flown all the way from Boston to check in with you, see how my Transatlantic friends are..". He raised an eyebrow. Her sarcasm has gone through the roof since she'd met him. _Well it_ _wasn't exactly a lie._

However seconds later a woman passed through the kitchen door and hovered behind Declan. Anna thought she looked vaguely familiar but couldn't pinpoint how or why. And then the terrible realisation dawned... It was the blonde from the photo she'd found in the wardrobe, Declan's ex-fiancée... what's her name, Kayleigh?

For the second time in two days Anna found herself at the centre of a hellish reality in which she just wanted to be swallowed up by the ground beneath her. Her breathing quickened and she suddenly realised that she might start crying uncontrollably right there in front of the whole pub. She surveyed the evidence, looking from Kayleigh to Declan and the enormity of the situation became clear. He'd obviously gone to see Kayleigh whilst in Dublin to get his mother's ring back - like Anna had urged him too - and now it seemed they had reconciled. She closed her eyes for a beat. She'd unwittingly brought the two of them back together. _Her fault._ It was too much. She needed to get out of there and fast.

Declan watched Anna turn on her heels and run out of the pub. "Anna, wait..!" _What was all that about?_

And as he turned and clocked Kayleigh standing a couple of feet away it dawned on him. Anna must have seen them together and jumped to the wrong conclusion. Well who could blame her - they really did look like the landlord and his wife standing there behind the bar.

 _Oh Jesus!_ He had to find her and explain. He was not losing her for a second time . He turned and ran back through the kitchen, taking the stairs two at a time to reach his bedroom. He collected the precious item from his top drawer and slipped it into his jeans pocket before heading back down.

"Kayleigh can you hold the fort please?" He paused for a second to take her in. Yes, he concluded, she was still beautiful. Inside and out. He'd seen a whole vulnerable side to her in the last week and knew he would have a friend for life in her. _But that's all._ He wondered if she was hurting inside. He genuinely hoped not.

But she wasn't the priority any more, Anna was.

He walked up to Kayleigh and gave her a kiss on the cheek "Im sorry.."

But she gave him a weak smile and batted his hand away "Don't be you eejit.. Just go and get her Decco".

* * *

Anna stood on the edge of the cliff looking at the waves crashing against the rocks down below. She looked around at the scenery that surrounded her - this place was truly stunning.

Yet she was in a dark dark place.

How on Earth had she got this so wrong? She acknowledged that losing Declan to someone else left her feeling more broken hearted than finding out rat-boy Jeremy had only wanted her for an apartment. How could Declan just disregard the past and take back the woman who'd betrayed him in the worst way possible? It didn't make sense.

She moved closer to the edge and peered down. It was a sheer drop. _There was one way to stop all of this pain.._

But she couldn't go through with that, she knew. Declan would have it on his conscience for the rest of his life and that wasn't on. See she was still thinking only of him, when all was said and done, everything came down to Declan at the end of the day. _The one that got away.._

Anna wondered briefly what she was going to do, obviously she would book on to the next flight back and consider her options back home. Perhaps a move closer to her mom in Seattle.

A familiar voice distracted her thoughts. "Mrs O'Brady Callaghan, where the HELL are you going?

 _What was he doing here? Why had he followed her?_

She turned to see Declan standing before her, his hair blowing gently in the afternoon breeze. _Why is this guy so goddamn hot?_

"Declan.. What are you doing... Where is your girlfriend? ...Or is the engagement all back on again?"

He gave her a sympathetic look. His conclusion had been correct, she had got the wrong end of the stick.

He took a deep breath

"Anna... me and Kayleigh aren't back together and we never will be. We've just been looking out for each other lately, that's all". He paused. "We both needed a friend..." He looked thoughtful for a second. "And despite what she did in the past, she's turned out to be a very decent friend actually"

 _But she wasn't Anna._

He knew he'd tell Anna about his close encounter with Kayleigh in the pub one day but that wasn't for here or now. There was something else he needed to do. He produced the ring from his pocket and held it out in the palm of his hand. "I wouldn't be holding this ring if it wasn't for you, so thank you"

He slowly sank down on to one knee and held the ring up between his thumb and index finger. He looked deep into her eyes.

"Miss Anna Brady from Boston, would you do me the honour of being my wife? He looked down at his positioning, his knee on the wet ground. "And I'd appreciate an answer soonish if you don't mind as it's already a bit damp down here"

Anna was on the brink of bursting with sheer unadulterated joy and happiness. This was probably the easiest question she'd ever have to answer.

"Yes, of course I'll marry you. You eejit. I love you Declan, so much"

He stood up and swept her up in his arms, lifting her off the ground. And as they kissed in the bask of the evening sunset Declan realised he finally had everything he ever wanted AND needed.

"Not as much as I love you... Bob"


End file.
